Opinion: My cell phone: Digital Leash

Thatâ€™s right. Not a cell phone, a digital leash, instantly connecting you to everyone. Your family, friends, coworkers and bosses are all a few short button presses from being all up in your business.

You canâ€™t escape it these days. Everyone has one, and they all expect you to be attached to your leash at all times. Heaven forbid you donâ€™t answer a phone call or reply to a text message within milliseconds.

Have you ever wanted to escape from the burden of that leash? I know I have quite often.

One of my favorite commercials shows a group of men travelling around in their pickup truck, constantly getting out checking their phones for reception. The plot twist in the end is that theyâ€™re trying to find somewhere they donâ€™t get reception. They are looking for a place to escape, and the company making the commercial claims to have the truck to get you there.

Too bad I drive a small sedan, no off road, no cell service adventures for me.

This isnâ€™t the first time Iâ€™ve written about my loathsome attitude toward modern electronic devices. Iâ€™m not a conspiracy theorist who thinks the government is keeping track of me through them, but I wouldnâ€™t put it past them to do so.

It seems to me, the people with the â€œsmartestâ€ phones are usually some of the dumbest people.

I live off base, clear on the other side of town, and damn near every day, some asshole nearly hits me, drives too slow, swerves all over the road or runs a red light because they canâ€™t take off their leashes long enough to get from point A to point B.

Others canâ€™t even walk a straight line because they are glued to the small screen of the latest â€œsmartâ€ phone.

Often, I canâ€™t make it through a head call, let alone a lunch break without my phone going off. A man canâ€™t even pee in peace anymore. What is this world coming to!?

I think Iâ€™m going to leave my phone at home for a weekend, and get out and go camping. I think that thing is probably giving me testicular cancer from being in my pocket all the time anyway.

Local Military Discounts

Pentagon Channel

Courtesy photograph Retired Col. Lee Ellis, a prisoner of war who spent five and a half years in the “Hanoi Hilton” during the Vietnam War, spoke at the Air Force Academy’s National Character and Leadership Sy...

An individual or individuals claiming to be “Exchange Inc.” have been placing advertisements in auto magazines and commercial newspapers, leading Army & Air Force Exchange Service shoppers to believe they’...

YUMA, Ariz. – In the wake of a recent tragedy, everyone from politicians to the talking heads in the media to the average Joe on the street has been talking about gun control. So far, the one measurable result of all this talk has been an explosion in the sales of firearms people fear may...

There is something to say about a lower enlisted Marine with an opinion, and that is they should have a limited one especially when time is of the essence. For most young Marines in the Corps words like, “We don’t pay you to think,” have been said to them on more than one occasion. There...

1.) What services do chaplains offer to military personnel? We offer spiritual guidance and advice but also counseling. So if Marines or Sailors come in with marriage problems or stress at work they can come and speak with a chaplain. Some of us have professional degrees but most don’t so it’s not like talking to...

What is Christmas to you? For me it is my favorite time of the year! As a Christian, I do celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The greatest gift the world has ever or will ever receive. But, not everyone believes as I do. So, what does Christmas mean to you? Too me, I love...

Information

Publisher

Disclaimer

The appearance of advertising in this publication does not constitute endorsement by the DoD, the Marine Corps, MCAS Yuma or Aerotech News and Review, Inc., of the products and services advertised.The views and comments expressed in the opinion articles are the author’s individual opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views of the DoD, the U.S. Marine Corps, MCAS Yuma, or Aerotech News and Review, Inc.